


Desert Rose

by Winkstine5



Category: Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: F/M, Gen, idk what this is, sleep deprived mess, this is maybe like a strong 37 percent accurate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-29
Updated: 2015-08-29
Packaged: 2018-04-17 20:38:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4680596
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winkstine5/pseuds/Winkstine5
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Josh eases into the eccentricities and comforts of the Courier.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Desert Rose

**Author's Note:**

> it is 3 am and i have been listening to sting for hours enjoy

He had been meticulously taking apart and cleaning his collection of handguns when word of the Courier’s arrival to Zion reached him.

Josh had expected some Legion dog—metaphorically speaking. He’d expected a brutal and devoted man of the Legion, much like the assassins he’d had thrown his way in the past to seek out the rumours of the Burned Man.

He hadn’t expected the woman that tailed Follows-Chalk into his reserved area of Angel Cave.

The Courier was a tiny woman, barely little more than five feet tall. She had massive, curious brown eyes that flitted about her surroundings with wonder and the learned discipline of any soldier. She stood proud, shoulders back and chin raised; it almost seemed as if she tried to make herself appear taller.

He’d expected her to be meek.

She was far from it.

Her name was Lupe. She told him several times but he continued to call her “Courier”.

Her sleight of tongue was formidable and made him careful of his words.

He had learned only this within their brief meeting within Angel Cave before she was off with Follows-Chalk to find the bus.

* * *

 

It was raining when Josh saw her a second time.

He had stepped out of his cave to stand under the cool downpour, desiring the brief moment of relief that followed his bandages being soaked through by the freezing rain of Zion. It was a precious moment; a millisecond that soothed his burning skin before the fried nerve endings kicked into high gear once more.

Lupe and Follows-Chalk were wading through the shallow waters back to the camp. Follows-Chalk was grinning impishly, Lupe trying to shield her face from the rain with her hands. It did not do much to block her face from the downpour, nor did it hide the grin on her face.

Her long, black hair was let down from the bun he’d seen her with it in the first time they met, the soaked locks clinging to her dark skin, imitating silk as the rain droplets traveled from root to end. Her leather armour was soaked through as well, water pouring from her like a waterfall when she finally stepped from the river and onto solid land.

Neither of them seemed to notice Josh, both praising the storm in delight as they shed their heavy gear.

Joshua ducked back into the darkness of his cave to change his bandages just before she looked his way.

* * *

 

He realized how obsessive he must’ve looked to her.

She returned to his cave with questions and the hankering of trade, an amused smile crossing her face.

“Is this all you do?” She remarked snidely, gesturing to him as he snapped the clip back into the place of the .45 in his hand, her hip cocked as she crossed her arms.

He might’ve been embarrassed over such a simple thing many years ago. Now, he felt it needed no answer.

“Preparations are necessary, Courier.” He said dryly, setting the handgun amoungst the pile of previously cleaned guns.

“Mhm,” She hummed, uncrossing her arms and walking around, leaning against his desk to show him something on the display of her Pipboy.

The Courier had a habit of making herself comfortable, he’d noticed. She’d taken to sharing lean-to’s and sleeping mats with a few Dead Horse women, sharing her own customs and culture with many others within the tribe as a show of good faith.

He supposed he was lucky enough that all she did was actively invade his personal space any time she walked into his quarters.

* * *

 

She was terribly nosy.

His knowledge of this seemed to be renewed anytime they were alone together for longer than thirty seconds. He imagined the medical marvel he appeared to be was fascinating to the mind of a doctor. Her intentions were well placed, surely.

It didn’t make her prying any less frustrating.

* * *

 

Joshua couldn’t pinpoint how he viewed the Courier.

She was treacherous like a storm, a calming front that would give way to a punishment that only the Lord himself could deliver in a fashion that far exceeded her own. He respected her abilities and her skills. She was friendly when needed and had no problem giving others a tongue lashing when they needed one.

Lupe was also incredibly distracting.

She was fond of the sound of her own voice and spoke more than anyone he’d ever encountered in his life. Her presence demanded attention and he resented that he was almost always willing to provide such.

She caught him outside Angel Cave by the fire, immediately going over to him with that mischievous smile she got on her face every time she was prepared to tease him.

“Does it invoke nostalgia?” She drawled, Josh looking from the flames within the pit and down at her grinning face. Her jabs burned less and less each time.

“Quite.” He said plainly, turning away from her and to the fire once more. He saw her stick out her small hands towards the warmth of the fire, rubbing them together.

“Have you changed your bandages yet?” She asked him without looking his way. Josh pretended he wasn’t bothered by such a little thing.

“I will be momentarily. Why do you ask?” He said slowly, looking at her cautiously. She viewed him as little more than a chance of research, a condition to be studied and marveled at with her medical mind.

“Because,” He watched her turn her pack to her front and dig through it, pulling out a brightly coloured orange bag. “I found a little something for you in a taboo spot.”

Josh stared at the bag wordlessly, not uncrossing his arms as he eyed it. She rolled her eyes, tossing her pack to the ground and unzipping the bright orange bag, pulling out a roll of gauze and holding it up.

“I salvaged what I could from various first aid kits. Figured it would be a welcome sight.” She shrugged, shoving the roll back in the back and zipping it back up.

He uncrossed his arms then and turned to her, lifting a hand to loosely grip to bag before she could toss that down as well. It was enough to bring her attention back to him. His lack of reaction must’ve hurt her somehow.

“It is. I am grateful. Such things are scarce here, as you can imagine. Thank you, Courier.” He murmured with a respectful nod, pausing before adding, “Lupe.”

“Oh, now you say my name.” She was grinning again, pushing the bag into his hands and settling her hands on her hips. “And all it cost was a bagful of gauze.”

Josh smiled just a fraction under his bandages, tucking the bag under his arm. She scooped up her pack from the ground, letting it dangle from her forearm as she flicked her long hair over her shoulder.

“Let me know if you need any skilled hands.” She drawled, strutting as well as one could on sand away from the campfire to claim a lean-to.

He stared after her foolishly, associating the warmth he felt within being the cause of the fire.

Joshua retreated to the safety of Angel Cave.

* * *

 

Lupe asked him about the .45’s again. He had told her many times by now but he repeated it regardless.

It was worth it just to see the slight quirking of her lips, a small smile she reserved for him every time she heard his voice.

* * *

 

She had been with them for nearly two months when she approached his desk and asked if she could bring her things and sleeping mat into his quarters.

“It’s raining hard out there and there’s no space in the lower cave.” Lupe insisted as she batted her lashes, hands set on those hips of hers as usual.

Josh considered it, looking over his quarters for a moment before looking back at her.

“If you can find space in here.” He said back dryly, earning a small laugh from her.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure I can make some.” She mused, hands dropping to her sides as she strut from his quarters, her hips swaying. He dropped the clip to the .45 in his hands, the metal clunking dully against the cave floor.

Lupe returned with her pack, nearly setting it by the mouth of the cave and laying out her mat neatly, getting on her hands and knees as she smoothed it out, humming. He dropped yet another .45 clip.

* * *

 

She had become a permanent resident in his quarters, it seemed.

On the warm evenings, she would insist it was too humid outside. When it rained, she needed shelter. If it was too cold out that night, she would say the cave was warm from the fire.

She stopped needing excuses after a few days.

* * *

 

It was quiet when Lupe was away with the Sorrows.

Joshua found his eyes straying from the Holy Book in his hands towards the cozy corner she occupied, half expecting to see her there cleaning her guns or sleeping peacefully. It had become such a normal sight, such a familiar presence. The cave was empty without the ray of sunshine she’d come to embody.

She returned after several days and the lights in his quarters seemed to burn brighter as she recounted her activities over the days of her absence to him. His handguns were untouched.

He was enthralled with her stories.

* * *

 

She brought him shell casings in bulk and they stayed up well until sunrise one night just reloading them.

Lupe babbled the entire time they worked, Josh so accustomed to her voice that he could focus on the task at hand while listening to her.

They made over a hundred rounds by the time they ran out of casings, Lupe giggling at her stained hands and wiping her palms against her pants, smears of black from the metals on her face.

He grabbed a scrap rag and wiped at the one on her jaw carefully, cleaning the smudge off from her skin. He cleaned the one from her nose and above her left eyebrow as well, a tad unfocused from the full weight of her gaze on him.

He gave her a nod once he’d cleaned her face of grease, turning away from her to let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.

Lupe gathered up the rounds and began sorting them neatly into two piles for them to share. She spoke little now.

Her face appeared to be flush.

 He blamed it on the dim lighting of the cave.

* * *

 

Joshua stepped from the mouth of Angel Cave and out into the sunlight, nodding in greeting to the Dead Horses who immediately greeted him enthusiastically. A small number of them were crowded around the fire, Lupe’s high pitched voice distinguishable amoungst the chatter.

He moved to see what the commotion was about, folding his arms across his chest.

Lupe was sitting cross-legged on the ground as she cooked something, Follows-Chalk seated beside her and listening intently to her as she explained to him what she was making, a big smile on her face.

It only seemed to widen when she saw Josh, standing immediately and moving through the small crowd of Dead Horses, offering him what she had thrown together with nonperishable goods and a few fresh ingredients.

It didn’t look terribly appealing but smelled fairly edible. It was certainly better than fried gecko.

He thanked her, accepting the concoction. His hands covered her smaller ones and, for a moment, she let it linger. She turned away bashfully with a smile, retracting her hands and returning to her spot to pass servings to her little hungry crowd.

Josh remained for only a moment before he turned and retreated back inside his cave to eat in peace, hoping the food would help the gnawing feeling within him subside.

* * *

 

“I got you a present.”

He couldn’t think of a more ominous thing for Lupe to say. She was soaked to the bone from the rain, teeth lightly chattering as she knelt on the cave floor, digging through her pack.

Josh stood up from his desk, stepping down from the ledge and over to her.

“Lupe, you’re freezing.” He noted, watching her pull out a black garbage bag from her pack.

“We’ll worry about that right now, hang on.” She giggled, a shiver edging her voice, little hands untying the knot on the bag.

“You could get _ill_.” He stressed, taking an advancing step towards her and halting in his steps when she held up his present in front of his face.

It was a teddy bear.

It was dusty looking; though it was evident she had tried to clean it as much as possible. The button eyes were surprisingly glossy, the stitching neat. Had she perhaps repaired it?

“I figured you could use something warm and soft to hug and cuddle.” She joked snidely; the bear trembled a tad as she visibly shivered.

He shook his head, grabbing a yao guai pelt and pulling it over her shoulders.

“You risk pneumonia for a stuffed toy.” He murmured, shaking his head again. Lupe stuck out the toy at arms length, Josh having to lean his head to the side to avoid a face-full of dusty fur.

“It would get ruined if I let it get wet. Just take the damn bear, Josh.” She laughed, teeth lightly chattering. He took the bear and tucked it under his arm, pulling the pelt around her more with his free hand.

“I won’t ask why you thought of me.” He drawled, going to set the stuffed toy on the cot where he slept, Lupe stripping off her soaked armour before snuggling into the pelt once more.

“ ‘Cause it’s a dusty old thing revived by a few stitches.” She shot back jokingly, Josh bringing her another pelt.

She slowly sat down on her sleeping mat, Josh kneeling beside her as he made sure she was sufficiently covered with blankets.

“I appreciate it. Even though the risk was incredibly foolish.” He shook his head, leaning back against the cave wall beside her, letting her cuddle against him for body heat.

“It was on the way, not a big detour.” She insisted, nuzzling her wet head against his arm.

Josh hesitated before he put his arm around her, Lupe happily accepting the embrace.

“Besides, you said God was watching over me. I’ll be fine, no?” She drawled. He felt her wrap her arms around his waist and cuddle against him.

“God willing.” He murmured, tentatively rubbing her back.

Her shivering ceased and Josh had thought she fell asleep against him until she shifted to sit up a bit, leaning her head against his shoulder. He went to move his arm away from around her shoulders but she took his hand, lacing her petite fingers neatly in the spaces between his own. Her grip was surprisingly tender and gentle.

“Stay.” She said simply, leaning against him and closing her eyes. Wet strands of hair still clung to her forehead.

“As you wish.”


End file.
